"Cutie Mark Cruaders, rollerblading!" Apple Bloom and her friends Sweetie and Scootaloo, as well as her dear cousin Babs Seed, had gotten together for their latest crusade to find their cutie marks. Although the things they did never got them one step closer, it was the time they shared as friends that would truly count. This time, the four Cutie Mark Crusaders were going to go rollerblading.
"We're gonna coast through Ponyville!" said Scootaloo.
"We'll show Ponyville how talented we are!" said Sweetie Belle.
"And we'll get our cutie marks fer sure," agreed Apple Bloom. "Babs, got the checklist ready?"
"Yep," said Babs Seed. "Let's make sure we're ready to do this. First on the list, safety equipment. Helmets?"
"Check!" said Apple Bloom, holding four helmets.
"Elbow pads? Knee pads?"
"Check that!" said Sweetie Belle, with the safety pads.
"Brakes?" said Babs. Scootaloo stepped into a pair of rollerblades and zipped forward, slamming on the built-in brakes a second later to test them. The rollerblades skidded to a halt.
"Definitely check!" confirmed Scootaloo.
"All right!" exclaimed Apple Bloom. "We're in business!" She then pulled out a small map of Ponyville. "It looks like we're good to start here, and we wanna take this path, that way we can avoid bumpin' into anypony..." But while the four of them were going over the map and planning their course, the rich fillies Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were hiding in a bush nearby. Apparently, Diamond Tiara was not about to let anything go right for the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Perhaps she was still in a hissy mood over Applejack threatening to tell her parents if she kept up with her heinous ways. After all, such a twisted mind could not be shifted... could it?
"Come on!" she said to Silver Spoon. "Now's our chance!" So when the Cutie Mark Crusaders were not looking, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon started tampering with the brakes on all four pairs of rollerblades. "Those blank flanks are gonna go on a crash course through the streets of Ponyville! They'll be blamed as menaces for sure!" Once the rich bullies were done, they went back into hiding, sniggering evilly. The Cutie Mark Crusaders then strapped on their equipment and took off for a rollerblading crusade. They coasted on a smooth dirt path. Scootaloo was buzzing her little wings to give herself more speed. Eventually, Babs put on her brakes, intending to take a hard left, but in doing so, her brakes suddenly snapped off their hinges and she sped out of control, unable to stop.
"What's going on?!" she cried. "I can't stop! Help!"
"Babs!" Apple Bloom slammed on her rollerblade brakes in an attempt to follow Babs and rescue her, but her brakes also snapped off their hinges and she couldn't stop, speeding off in a different direction from Babs. Scootaloo flapped her wings harder than ever and Sweetie Belle held on to her so they could catch up to Apple Bloom. They soon caught hold of her and slammed on their brakes, but due to Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon having intervened, they snapped off their hinges, sending all three careening out of control. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon soon realized that the Cutie Mark Crusaders would not be crashing through Ponyville as they had planned their prank to go. But Babs ended up speeding towards Ponyville.
"I can't stoooop!" Babs cried out, as ponies jumped clear to avoid getting hit. Babs soon tripped at the fountain and fell in the water head first. A few seconds later, she came up sputtering for air.
"Land sakes, Babs!" said Applejack, having seen the whole thing. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm... fine," said Babs. "But something's wrong with our rollerblades." She lifted one of her rear hooves up and saw that the brake was gone. "The brake! It snapped off!"
"You girls weren't goin' too fast, were y'all?" asked Applejack.
"I don't think so. We made sure the brakes were fine first." That's when they heard the other three crusaders scream.
"HELLLLLLLLP!"
"Oh, no!" cried Babs. "Apple Bloom!"
"Sweetie Belle!" shouted Rarity, having heard the girls scream, and took off towards the sound of their voices. Rainbow Dash had been relaxing on a cloud, but when she heard the screaming, she instantly took off, instinctively intending to come to the rescue.
"Hang on, girls!" said Rainbow Dash. "I'm coming!" Meanwhile, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo were headed straight for a cliff. Unable to steer without their brakes, they toppled over just as Rarity, Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Babs Seed entered the scene. The ponies gasped as the Cutie Mark Crusaders fell into a lake below the cliff. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon rolled on the ground, hooting with laughter.
"What in Equestria is so funny, you monsters?!" snarled Rarity. "Did you two plan this?!" Twilight saw bubbles coming up to the surface to the lake and was horrorstruck.
"They can't swim with all that equipment on them!" she cried.
"No!" cried Babs. "Apple Bloom!" Rainbow Dash boldly dove down into the lake headfirst without a second thought. After a whole minute of tension rising, with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon beginning to realize just how serious this might be, Rainbow emerged from the lake, carrying all three fillies. The rollerblading equipment had been lost. Rainbow gently put the Cutie Mark Crusaders down onto the soft ground, each of them now unconscious.
"Apple Bloom!" cried Applejack.
"Sweetie Belle!" cried Rarity. Both ponies cradled their younger sisters, immensely worried about them. Babs started to cry.
"Rainbow..." said Twilight. "You saved them."
"Yeah, of course I did," said Rainbow, trying to retain her pride. But then she suddenly sneezed. "Ugh... I guess swimming doesn't suit me so well." She rubbed her nose. Twilight then cast an angry glare at both Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, followed up by Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash, who was then cradling Scootaloo.
"Uh-oh..." they both said in unison, realizing for possibly the first time in their lives that they were in serious trouble.
Remembering
Felicia Garcia
Bailey O'Neill